Have you ever thought about what it is like to work for you? How about ways to improve the hiring process and level the playing field? Surabhi Jain has. Her recent posting for a program manager got a lot of attention on linked in and attracted countless qualified candidates.

In today’s challenging climate, when demand for services is has gone up, resources have gone down and over half of our workforce is planning to move one, you might want to learn from this example and consider how you might work to attract great people for your team.

Today Surabhi is here to join us in conversation and we are going to be talking about transparent and open hiring practices.

Surabhi is the Executive Director of the Toronto Workforce Funders Collaborative. She a leader in the social impact sector with nearly 20 years of experience in designing, implementing, and managing employment and skills development programs. She has worked closely with Fortune 500 companies to help them change racially biased hiring practices. At the same time, she has engaged in capacity building for the non-profit sector to change systems.

Surabhi's lived experiences have afforded her a unique perspective on transformative systems change. She brings experiences from the workplace, from her travels, and from her childhood that have shaped her understanding of community, leadership, and human development.

If you were on linked in a couple of months ago you may have seen her job posting for a program manager. This job post got a lot of attention because it was extremely transparent, the hiring process was outlined in detail, including salary of course and even a section on what it is like to work with her.

Here is a small taste of Surabhi’s job posting:

“I’d like to think that I am the best supervisor/manager out there but that is not true. You will likely have worked or will work with someone better than me. I am a hands-off manager who likes to connect with their staff at least once a week so we can each share what we are working on. I am a stickler for deadlines and appreciate a heads up when things will be turned in late. I am huge on relationship building and will work to ensure you and I can work together well. I value work-life balance and do not expect you to work past your identified working hours. I am focused on you getting your work done and less on the number of hours you put into your work. Quality of work over quantity of work is very important for me. I want to work with someone who can push back on my ideas, offer critical and diverse perspectives, and values challenging conversations. We can agree to disagree but need to represent a joint front for the organization. I’m happy to provide references of individuals I have worked with in the past so you can get a sense of my style of working. “

Thank you so much Surabhi for joining us in conversation. I could talk to you all day! And folks do get in touch with Surabhi if you would like her to take a look at your job posting. You can email her at sj@workforcecollaborative.ca.

Thank you for making this a priority in your day. Please remember to like, review and share this podcast. Let’s keep inviting more people into the circle. See you next time.

How do you feel about working with corporate funders. Some people love it, some people head for the hills and try to avoid sponsorship.

Suzy Wilcox loves corporate fundraising and the unique partnerships they are engaged in at Evergreen Canada.

Suzy has a mix of non-profit, consulting and corporate experience. She loves how fundraising can help bring big, complex ideas to life. For over twenty-five years she has worked and volunteered with a range of organizations. A common thread throughout her work is building strong partnerships that make a positive difference in and with communities.

After graduating from Princeton University, Suzy worked in Marketing and Development at several US arts organizations, including the American Dance Festival and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She earned her MBA at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management before working in research, project management, and client relations at the renowned Toronto sponsorship agency Arts & Communications.

While at Arts & Communications, she analyzed and developed corporate philanthropy and sponsorship programs. She was then recruited by Air Canada to be a Marketing Manager, before moving to Aeroplan in partner relations, primarily with the CIBC Aerogold VISA program. Starting in 2004, Suzy worked for 15 years as a Senior Associate with NetGain Partners. As a NetGain consultant, she had the pleasure of working with a variety of non-profit clients, including MOCA Toronto, Centre of Learning & Development, City of Toronto, and Canada’s National Ballet School, helping them with strategic planning and fundraising. Since 2020 Suzy has led Evergreen’s fundraising team, working to enable cities that are livable, green and prosperous.

When not working, Suzy hangs out with her family, dances, swims, and tends her wild garden. She used to be a mime but decided the rope and the wall could only get her so far.

In this episode Suzy shares how her organization is changing the way they build partnerships with corporations, volunteers, staff and community to advance trust based philanthropy.

Thank you for joining us. I hope you are inspired to rethink how you build relationships with your funders and your volunteers. Please remember to like, share or review this podcast. Let’s keep widening the circle and inviting more people into the conversation.

Can you imagine getting three full PAID months off of work (not including your vacation days!) to take time off to rest, reflect and rejuvenate?

Today I am thrilled to invite Renee Krysko into conversation about the value of paid sabbaticals. Renee and I talk about the importance of how taking time to put herself first serves her family, her community and helped her excel at her job.

Renée has a passion for people and creating connections. After serving Yellowstone 2 Yukon (Y2Y) as communications manager for four years, Renée moved into the role of donor relations manager, then director of donor relations, where her strong communications skills enable her to forge important relationships with Y2Y supporters.

Prior to Y2Y, Renée worked with academics and company leaders to develop communications strategies and community relations programs. Born and raised in Alberta, and as a skier, hiker and cyclist the Yellowstone to Yukon region is both her home and her playground.

In today’s episode Renee shares the benefits of her sabbatical and how she carries forward her own self care practices and went back to work with a new perspective.

I’m so grateful to Renee for joining us in conversation and thank you for making this a priority in your day.

Please remember to like, review and share this podcast. Let’s keep welcoming more people into conversation.

In July 2020 our guest Marisa DeSalles published an article that unleashed all the years of built-up trauma that she experienced as the only BIPOC fundraiser in her white dominated organization.

In this candid conversation Marissa recounts her experience of micro aggressions and her shock at realizing that she had been complicit in maintaining the status quo of racism in her organization.

Marissa now helps nonprofits strategize their growth by focusing on the health of the systems they use, including data management systems, marketing and communication systems, and organizational structures.

Her work is informed by Community-Centric Fundraising, a movement seeking to prioritize equity in fundraising. This movement favours a more collaborative approach that honours the inherent strengths within community members.

Marissa’s specialty is working with emerging organizations in search of growth, and in particular organizations led by and focused on issues affecting Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.

Marissa and I candidly shares her experience of code switching, altering her voice to sound white on the telephone changing her behaviour and her appearance to “fit in”.

We also discuss the discomfort of acknowledging our collective privilege and concrete first steps can we take to stop causing harm to each other.

One of those concrete first steps is a confession. I must confess to you that this conversation was sometimes awkward and difficult. I was tempted to edit out moments where my white privilege and ignorance is on full display.

In consultation with Marissa we chose to keep it in to serve as an example of what BIPOC people have to deal with on a daily basis. To Marissa I apologize for my ignorance and am deeply grateful for her grace and compassion.

Once again, thank you Marissa for your grace and for helping us all, including me, do better.

You can find a link to Marisa’s powerful essay Fly in the Milk here.

https://communitycentricfundraising.org/2020/07/11/12-years-a-fly-in-the-milk/

Thank you so much for making this conversation a priority in your day. Please be sure to join our email list at intersectionhub.ca to get new episodes sent directly to your in box. And let’s keep widening the circle and continuing these conversations by sharing this podcast.

Thank you for being part of this community.

If you were the CEO of a for profit company and 48% of your sales team had one foot out the door and were scanning the horizon for a better job would you make a correction?

Of course you would.

And yet, for decades the charitable sector has been tolerating a revolving door of staff with the average tenure for senior level fundraisers just 18 months. That is hardly enough time to figure out how the coffee maker works. Let alone build strong relationships with donors. And yet we seem content to hemorrhage human and financial resources.

What if it didn’t have to be that way? Today on our podcast we are spotlighting the British Columbia Society for Prevention Cruelty to Animals. Under the leadership of powerhouse fundraiser Shoni Field the BC SPCA is a great example of an organization that prioritizes building a loyal team.

Shoni is going to share more about the work of the BC SPCA so I tell you a little bit about her.

Shoni is the Chief Development Officer at the BC SPCA and is very proud of her skilled and passionate team of innovators who consistently exceed industry benchmarks. She has been fundraising for 25+ years for a range of causes including environmental, youth, health, and development organizations. Shoni is the founder of the For the Paws Summit for animal welfare fundraisers and when she’s not fundraising, she advocates for electoral reform and citizen engagement, plays strategy games and bakes fancy cakes. Shoni is a settler on the unceded traditional territory of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.

In this episode Shoni and I cover a lot of territory. We talk about rethinking performance metrics, what makes a good boss, values-based decision making and creating psychological safety for your team.

Remember, if you have more examples of organizations that you think we should shine a spotlight on next season we are actively curating Season Five right now so get in touch

Thank you for making this conversation a priority in your day. We are so glad you are part of this community and we would be so grateful if you would rate, review and share this podcast so that we can keep widening the circle.

To make your recommendations for charities we should spotlight next season you can reach Kimberley by email at k@kimberleymackenzie.ca or join the community at The Intersection Hub and get on the list.

See you next time!

Conversations about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are essential in every organization. They are also just the beginning of important antiracist work.

Today we are spotlighting one charity that goes beyond DEI workshops and is expecting all their staff to join them on an antiracist journey – everyday.

At the Downtown Boxing Gym in Detroit, Michigan Founder Khali Sweeney and their Executive Director Jessica Hauser discovered that while their organization had grown, racist practices started to creep in.

Khali and Jessica quickly realized that they needed to go beyond a workshop and their DEI policies and protect their staff and the 200+ boys and girls they serve from letting white dominance take over.

Today I am joined in conversation with Jessica about what that looked like, what they did and how they continue the work with all their staff and consistently ask themselves: Are we centering the most marginalized voice in this conversation?

The Downtown Boxing Gym (DBG) is a nationally recognized, Detroit-based nonprofit organization breaking down barriers and providing vital resources to help students thrive. Now in its 15th year, DBG serves approximately 200 students ages 8-18 with continuing support through age 25, the first years of college and careers. The free, out-of-school time program has a 100% high school graduation rate since its inception.

DBG knocks down barriers like food insecurity, transportation, and the digital divide, and provides a holistic, personalized learning plan for each student, enrichment programming, college and career readiness, social-emotional skills building, basic needs support, and so much more.

Jessica Hauser is a passionate nonprofit leader and as Executive Director of DBG continues to navigate significant growth enabling the program to serve a diverse and growing group of amazing young leaders. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Oakland University and completed coursework in International Children’s Rights at the University of Michigan.

Jessica is a member of the Michigan Afterschool Partnership, a coalition that champions statewide access to quality and equitable out-of-school time programs. She also serves as a board member with the Detroit chapter of Women in Sports and Events (WISE).

Over the last several years, Jessica has spoken on panels for Dreamforce Leading for Change, Crain's 40 Under 40, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's Whole-Child Convening, We Work, and the Detroit Regional Chamber. She has presented DBG's work to graduate students at Cornell University, led a convening about COVID-safe re-opening with the YDRC (Youth Development Resource Center), and led a discussion about the digital divide with Salesforce.

Jessica’s partner, in life and work, Khali Sweeney is the founder of the Downtown Boxing Gym and had planned to join us in conversation. However, at the time of this recording he was recovering from a concussion and while unable to join us was certainly cheering us on from the sidelines.

Every single day Khali and Jessica expect all their staff – just like the kids they serve – to become the next best version of themselves. As you listen, I’m sure you will agree with me that Khali, Jessica and all their staff are having a massive impact in their community.

DBG is a fabulous example of an organization that takes care of each other so that they can work together to ensure that every child and staff member who walks into their doors they are treated with kindness, compassion and respect.

Links:

The Downtown Boxing Gym: https://dbgdetroit.org/

Olaudah Kindness Speech https://dbgdetroit.org/videos/#uael-video-gallery-55ebad5-3

Thank you for making this conversation a priority in your day. We are so glad you are part of our community. Please remember to share, review, subscribe to this podcast. And if you have more examples of organizations that you think we should spotlight next season please do let us know.

Can you imagine working in an organization that pays you a livable wage, gives you time to rest and rejuvenate and sees taking care of your physical and mental health as part of their mission delivery? I know sounds impossible. But it is. It is possible.

Today we have a fabulous case study of an organization that does all those things and more. I’m happy to welcome Brandon Yan into conversation. Brandon is the Executive Director of Out on Screen which is a charity in Vancouver British Columbia, Canada that is building an equitable society where gender and sexual diversity thrives. At the start of our conversation Brandon will tell you more about out on screen.

For now, I’ll tell you more about him. He is an optimistic and driven non-profit senior leader adept at managing operations, programming, and cultivating constructive relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and community partners to advance equity and inclusion. You will hear that Brandon is an Active and empathetic listener who has a passion for social justice, intersectional feminism, and LGBT2QS+ rights.

In this episode, Brandon shares how his organization is building a culture of safety and well-being for their staff by reducing meetings, having four-day work weeks, paying a livable wage, and prioritizing the health and well-being of his staff as part of their mission delivery.

And a fabulous conversationalist. I loved chatting with him.

Out on Screen is a real example of an organization that is banishing martyrdom, prioritizing their people and delivering community impact. Why not share this episode with your staff and talk about the kind of changes needed in your organization to help create a safer space for your team.

This was just the first eight fabulous episodes this season of in the trenches leaders who are paving a new, healthier way forward for our sector. We are going to talk about anti racism in action, trust-based philanthropy and more about how to take care of the mental, physical and spiritual well-being of those working so hard to do so much to make the world a better place.

So be sure to join our email list at intersection hub.ca so all of Season 4 directly in your inbox. And please get in touch if you have suggestions for other organizations, we can profile next season.

We are also always grateful for your feedback, referrals and sharing this podcast. Let us know what you think! I’d love to hear from you. Thank you for being part of the conversation. See you next time.